Why is it that, even when paying Dallas a compliment (as with Foreign Policy ranking the city as the 23rd most dynamic in the world, expected to be among the most important places on the globe in 2025), magazines can’t resist falling back on the old-standbys:
The capital of big hair and big oil, sports-crazed Dallas holds the distinction of being the only U.S. city to have hosted the World Series, the NBA finals, and the Super Bowl in the same year. Jerry Jones, the megalomaniacal owner of the Dallas Cowboys, has left an indelible mark on the city, constructing a $1.15 billion stadium for America’s Team that serves as a landmark to American bigness. The site of the first Neiman Marcus department store, Dallas has also proved itself to be an economic dynamo, cradling a booming energy industry and a slew of tech companies that led the city to be known during the 1980s as the “Silicon Prairie.” Still, to many people around the world, Dallas may be best known for the schmaltzy 1980s soap opera — in addition to the unimaginative 2012 remake — that unfathomably became a global hit at the height of the Cold War.
To add insult to injury, Dallas finished one spot behind Houston. Shouldn’t be surprised, I suppose, since Houston is the coolest city in the U.S. Otherwise, Dallas is the fourth American city on the list, trailing only Houston, New York, and Los Angeles.
Read the whole ranking , and you may find yourself feeling a need to learn to speak Chinese.
